Havre Prides fall cleanup is Saturday morning

The Havre community will have the chance to clean up the city's street trash Saturday and get a free lunch from the Havre Fire Department for their efforts.

The Havre Pride Committee of the Havre Area Chamber of Commerce is hosting its biannual community effort to clean up the streets of Havre on Saturday morning, beginning at 8:30.

Community volunteers will pick up loose trash throughout the city, and local business managers and owners are asked to sweep out, wipe down and clean up areas around their stores.

The blue Pride trash bags for the cleanup and tickets for the lunch at the Havre Fire Department can be picked up at any of the five trash redemption sites the Sixth Avenue ballfield, Highland Park Noon's store, the VFW parking lot, Stromberg's Sinclair and the north side of the North Havre Community Food Bank.

Students at Havre Public Schools are involved in the cleanup today and can receive tickets for the Saturday afternoon lunch at any of the five trash redemption sites on Saturday, Kim Cripps, co-chair of Havre Pride, said.

The cleanup has taken place every April and September since 1990, but the lunches started only last year, Cripps said.

"It gets people out on a beautiful Saturday morning, and it gives a togetherness to clean at their own free will, other than the community service people that have to be out there," Cripps said.

The Havre Fire Department will barbecue hamburgers and hot dogs at noon for all community volunteers, Cripps said.

Cripps added that everyone who takes part in the cleanup should be careful about the trash that they pick up and not to pick up any needles, snakes or other potentially hazardous items.

Cripps also wanted to remind community volunteers to wear gloves and other protective clothes and only pick up and return street trash, and not household garbage.

Pride will also have a garbage truck on call Saturday. Anyone can call Cripps at 265-0905 if they spot any dangerous pieces of street trash or find any old water heaters, clothes washers, dryers, or other discarded machines in alleys or on a street.